Julie McCredden | University of Queensland (original) (raw)
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Papers by Julie McCredden
Cognitive Psychology, 1998
Five experiments were performed to test whether participants induced a coherent representation of... more Five experiments were performed to test whether participants induced a coherent representation of the structure of a task, called a relational schema, from specific instances. Properties of a relational schema include: An explicit symbol for a relation, a binding that preserves the truth of a relation, potential for higher-order relations, omnidirectional access, potential for transfer between isomorphs, and ability to predict unseen items in isomorphic problems. However relational schemas are not necessarily coded in abstract form. Predictions from relational schema theory were contrasted with predictions from configural learning and other nonstructural theories in five experiments in which participants were taught a structure comprised of a set of initial-state,operator-->end-state instances. The initial-state,operator pairs were presented and participants had to predict the correct end-state. Induction of a relational schema was achieved efficiently by adult participants as indicated by ability to predict items of a new isomorphic problem. The relational schemas induced showed the omnidirectional access property, there was efficient transfer to isomorphs, and structural coherence had a powerful effect on learning. The "learning to learn" effect traditionally associated with the learning set literature was observed, and the long-standing enigma of learning set acquisition is explained by a model composed of relational schema induction and structure mapping. Performance was better after reversal of operators than after shift to an alternate structure, even though the latter entailed more overlap with previously learned tasks in terms of the number of configural associations that were preserved. An explanation for the reversal shift phenomenon in terms of induction and mapping of a relational schema is proposed. The five experiments provided evidence supporting predictions from relational schema theory, and no evidence was found for configural or nonstructural learning theories.
The Cognitive Neuroscience of Working Memory, 2007
Learning and Instruction, 1998
New concepts from cognitive science have fundamentally changed our view of cognitive development.... more New concepts from cognitive science have fundamentally changed our view of cognitive development. In this paper we explore the implications of three concepts from cognitive science. These are learning (and induction), analogy, and capacity. New conceptions of learning have enabled us to understand how representations of the world are acquired. New models of analogical reasoning have suggested that "logical" inferences are often made by mapping the problem into a mental model, or schema, induced from ordinary life experience. A model of analogical reasoning, based on neural nets, provides a natural basis for capacity limitations, and specifies changes in representations over age that explain phenomena previously thought to be stagerelated.
Psychological Science, 2005
The conceptual complexity of problems was manipulated to probe the limits of human information pr... more The conceptual complexity of problems was manipulated to probe the limits of human information processing capacity. Participants were asked to interpret graphically displayed statistical interactions. In such problems, all independent variables need to be considered together, so that decomposition into smaller subtasks is constrained, and thus the order of the interaction directly determines conceptual complexity. As the order of the interaction increases, the number of variables increases. Results showed a significant decline in accuracy and speed of solution from three-way to four-way interactions. Furthermore, performance on a five-way interaction was at chance level. These findings suggest that a structure defined on four variables is at the limit of human processing capacity.
… in connectionist and …, Jan 1, 1994
There is now a reasonable amount of consensus that an analogy entails a mapping from one structur... more There is now a reasonable amount of consensus that an analogy entails a mapping from one structure, the base or source, to another structure, the target (Gentner, 1983, 1989; Holyoak & Thagard, 1989). Theories of human analogical reasoning have been reviewed by Gentner (1989), who concludes that there is basic agreement on the one-to-one mapping of elements and the carry over of predicates. Furthermore, as Palmer (1989) points out, some of the theoretical differences represent different levels of description rather than competing models. Despite this consensus about the central role of structure mapping, it really only treats the syntax of analogies, and there are also important pragmatic factors, as has been pointed out by Holland, Holyoak, Nisbett, and Thagard (1986) and Holyoak and Thagard (1989), However in this chapter we are primarily concerned with the problem of how to model the structure mapping or syntactic component of analogical reasoning in terms of parallel distributed processing (PDP) architectures.
According to Gentner (1983), attributes are not normally mapped in analogies, and only certain relations are mapped, the selection being based on systematicity, or the degree to which relations enter into a coherent structure. Gentner (1983) defines an attribute as a predicate taking one argument, whereas a relation is a predicate taking two arguments. Strictly, this only covers binary relations; in general, a relation is a predicate taking two or more arguments, so ternary relations have three arguments, quaternary relations four arguments, and so on. For our purposes a predicate is essentially an N-place relation; it can be defined as a N-place function from the Cartesian product of the N sets to the set {T,F}. This includes unary relations, which are predicates with one argument, and are equivalent to attributes in Gentner's terms. Our derivations based on relations can be applied to functions.
Cognitive Development, 2007
According to cognitive complexity and control (CCC) theory complexity depends on number of levels... more According to cognitive complexity and control (CCC) theory complexity depends on number of levels of a hierarchy of rules. According to relational complexity (RC) theory complexity is a function of the number of related variables in the task, and the most difficult tasks are those in which there is a constraint on decomposition into simpler subtasks. One hundred and twenty, 3–6-year old children were tested on the standard dimensional change card sort (DCCS) task, or a modified version, the DecompDCCS, in which the dimensions could be decomposed into subtasks. The standard version requires two levels of a hierarchy to be processed, and is ternary relational according to RC theory, whereas the subtasks of the DecompDCCS are binary relational. The DecompDCCS was easier than the DCCS for 3–4 year-olds, but all 5–6 year-olds succeeded on both. The results indicate that decomposability into simpler subtasks, as suggested by RC theory, is a factor in difficulty of DCCS. The role of decomposability in other tasks that are persistently difficult for young children is discussed.
Psychological Science, 2005
The conceptual complexity of problems was manipulated to probe the limits of human information pr... more The conceptual complexity of problems was manipulated to probe the limits of human information processing capacity. Participants were asked to interpret graphically displayed statistical interactions. In such problems, all independent variables need to be considered together, so that decomposition into smaller subtasks is constrained, and thus the order of the interaction directly determines conceptual complexity. As the order of the interaction increases, the number of variables increases. Results showed a significant decline in accuracy and speed of solution from three-way to four-way interactions. Furthermore, performance on a five-way interaction was at chance level. These findings suggest that a structure defined on four variables is at the limit of human processing capacity.
Cognitive Psychology, 1998
Five experiments were performed to test whether participants induced a coherent representation of... more Five experiments were performed to test whether participants induced a coherent representation of the structure of a task, called a relational schema, from specific instances. Properties of a relational schema include: An explicit symbol for a relation, a binding that preserves the truth of a relation, potential for higher-order relations, omnidirectional access, potential for transfer between isomorphs, and ability to predict unseen items in isomorphic problems. However relational schemas are not necessarily coded in abstract form. Predictions from relational schema theory were contrasted with predictions from configural learning and other nonstructural theories in five experiments in which participants were taught a structure comprised of a set of initial-state,operator-->end-state instances. The initial-state,operator pairs were presented and participants had to predict the correct end-state. Induction of a relational schema was achieved efficiently by adult participants as indicated by ability to predict items of a new isomorphic problem. The relational schemas induced showed the omnidirectional access property, there was efficient transfer to isomorphs, and structural coherence had a powerful effect on learning. The "learning to learn" effect traditionally associated with the learning set literature was observed, and the long-standing enigma of learning set acquisition is explained by a model composed of relational schema induction and structure mapping. Performance was better after reversal of operators than after shift to an alternate structure, even though the latter entailed more overlap with previously learned tasks in terms of the number of configural associations that were preserved. An explanation for the reversal shift phenomenon in terms of induction and mapping of a relational schema is proposed. The five experiments provided evidence supporting predictions from relational schema theory, and no evidence was found for configural or nonstructural learning theories.
The Cognitive Neuroscience of Working Memory, 2007
Learning and Instruction, 1998
New concepts from cognitive science have fundamentally changed our view of cognitive development.... more New concepts from cognitive science have fundamentally changed our view of cognitive development. In this paper we explore the implications of three concepts from cognitive science. These are learning (and induction), analogy, and capacity. New conceptions of learning have enabled us to understand how representations of the world are acquired. New models of analogical reasoning have suggested that "logical" inferences are often made by mapping the problem into a mental model, or schema, induced from ordinary life experience. A model of analogical reasoning, based on neural nets, provides a natural basis for capacity limitations, and specifies changes in representations over age that explain phenomena previously thought to be stagerelated.
Psychological Science, 2005
The conceptual complexity of problems was manipulated to probe the limits of human information pr... more The conceptual complexity of problems was manipulated to probe the limits of human information processing capacity. Participants were asked to interpret graphically displayed statistical interactions. In such problems, all independent variables need to be considered together, so that decomposition into smaller subtasks is constrained, and thus the order of the interaction directly determines conceptual complexity. As the order of the interaction increases, the number of variables increases. Results showed a significant decline in accuracy and speed of solution from three-way to four-way interactions. Furthermore, performance on a five-way interaction was at chance level. These findings suggest that a structure defined on four variables is at the limit of human processing capacity.
… in connectionist and …, Jan 1, 1994
There is now a reasonable amount of consensus that an analogy entails a mapping from one structur... more There is now a reasonable amount of consensus that an analogy entails a mapping from one structure, the base or source, to another structure, the target (Gentner, 1983, 1989; Holyoak & Thagard, 1989). Theories of human analogical reasoning have been reviewed by Gentner (1989), who concludes that there is basic agreement on the one-to-one mapping of elements and the carry over of predicates. Furthermore, as Palmer (1989) points out, some of the theoretical differences represent different levels of description rather than competing models. Despite this consensus about the central role of structure mapping, it really only treats the syntax of analogies, and there are also important pragmatic factors, as has been pointed out by Holland, Holyoak, Nisbett, and Thagard (1986) and Holyoak and Thagard (1989), However in this chapter we are primarily concerned with the problem of how to model the structure mapping or syntactic component of analogical reasoning in terms of parallel distributed processing (PDP) architectures.
According to Gentner (1983), attributes are not normally mapped in analogies, and only certain relations are mapped, the selection being based on systematicity, or the degree to which relations enter into a coherent structure. Gentner (1983) defines an attribute as a predicate taking one argument, whereas a relation is a predicate taking two arguments. Strictly, this only covers binary relations; in general, a relation is a predicate taking two or more arguments, so ternary relations have three arguments, quaternary relations four arguments, and so on. For our purposes a predicate is essentially an N-place relation; it can be defined as a N-place function from the Cartesian product of the N sets to the set {T,F}. This includes unary relations, which are predicates with one argument, and are equivalent to attributes in Gentner's terms. Our derivations based on relations can be applied to functions.
Cognitive Development, 2007
According to cognitive complexity and control (CCC) theory complexity depends on number of levels... more According to cognitive complexity and control (CCC) theory complexity depends on number of levels of a hierarchy of rules. According to relational complexity (RC) theory complexity is a function of the number of related variables in the task, and the most difficult tasks are those in which there is a constraint on decomposition into simpler subtasks. One hundred and twenty, 3–6-year old children were tested on the standard dimensional change card sort (DCCS) task, or a modified version, the DecompDCCS, in which the dimensions could be decomposed into subtasks. The standard version requires two levels of a hierarchy to be processed, and is ternary relational according to RC theory, whereas the subtasks of the DecompDCCS are binary relational. The DecompDCCS was easier than the DCCS for 3–4 year-olds, but all 5–6 year-olds succeeded on both. The results indicate that decomposability into simpler subtasks, as suggested by RC theory, is a factor in difficulty of DCCS. The role of decomposability in other tasks that are persistently difficult for young children is discussed.
Psychological Science, 2005
The conceptual complexity of problems was manipulated to probe the limits of human information pr... more The conceptual complexity of problems was manipulated to probe the limits of human information processing capacity. Participants were asked to interpret graphically displayed statistical interactions. In such problems, all independent variables need to be considered together, so that decomposition into smaller subtasks is constrained, and thus the order of the interaction directly determines conceptual complexity. As the order of the interaction increases, the number of variables increases. Results showed a significant decline in accuracy and speed of solution from three-way to four-way interactions. Furthermore, performance on a five-way interaction was at chance level. These findings suggest that a structure defined on four variables is at the limit of human processing capacity.